Electrical connectors having insulation displacement contact elements are usually applied to multiconductor flat cables individually in a manual crimping press. For most applications this has proven satisfactory. However, in high volume applications the handling of each individual connector is too time consuming.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,281,442 discloses a machine for applying connectors to multiconductor flat cables substantially automatically, including the automatic feeding of the connector parts and the cable. The machine is, however, more complex and expensive than desirable.